Thank you for your public serviceThe December Council Meeting on 12/20/2012, will complete a two-year term for all eight alderman. In January 2011, six inexperienced (public service related) but eager men joined two veteran council members and a newly elected mayor. This group of nine people have dedicated themselves in many ways to making the best choices and decisions for the City of Russellville. I believe and hope that we, as a council, have succeeded in making Russellvil...

The power in your mindThe first step we took together was talking about how to make changes to your diet without traumatizing yourself in the process so it could be a lifestyle change rather than a fad diet you wouldn’t follow more than a week or two. The second step was how to start a progressive exercise routine that you could see benefits from early on in the comfort of your own home and maintain without a lot of special equipment. The third step is related to u...

SE of Disorder: A day to be thankful forWe gave much thanks and then made it through the Thanksgiving holiday Thursday. For my young bride, Rosemary, and I, Thursday was a work day, so we didn’t have all the at-home craziness of cooking until you drop, loads of family and company hanging around and getting on one another’s nerves, or the boredom that comes with a holiday on a weekday and the reality that everything is closed and there’s nowhere to go. We did manage to get the Friday...

Taking a momentHow can one possibly be in the mood to give thanks when football season in the River Valley has come to a close? Wait, did I just write that? At least we still have some college ball and the NFL — right? So high school football season is over. And it’s hard to believe. I got this job just as football season was preparing to take off. We was just starting to work on our preview section and I was thrown in with very little idea what I was doing....

Despite wins, GOP has own rifts to healLITTLE ROCK (AP) — Taking over the state House for the first time in 138 years was the easy part for Arkansas Republicans. The bigger challenge may be healing the rifts within their ranks. Republican Rep. Davy Carter’s surprising and rapid election as incoming speaker last week highlighted the divides within the GOP as it transitions into its new role as the legislative majority. It also shows the opening that Democrats believe they have even ...

Southeast of DisorderScatter shooting while still wondering who will be the next football coach at the University of Arkansas. The election is over and we as a community and a nation are moving forward. That’s a good thing. The rhetoric got pretty deep in the national and state elections, but hopefully, all will get back to some semblance of normality in our lives. There will still be plenty of people telling everyone what is wrong and how bad some elected officia...

Listening prayerWhen we start considering prayer, we might think of the time Jesus’ disciples asked him to teach them to prayer. They had observed his prayer life and were amazed at what they had witnessed. What he shared gave us what we think of as a model prayer. Another prayer is the prayer that Jesus prayed shortly before his crucifixion, which is recorded in John 17 when Jesus prayed for himself, his disciples and then for everyone who believes in him th...

Time to tell City Council if you want new marketThe whispers out of city hall this past week is that when the Russellville City Council considers a zoning change for a proposed new Walmart Neighborhood Market in West Russellville, the zoning request may be denied, perhaps for a technical reason. The council must approve a zoning change on a vacant lot for Walmart to build a Neighborhood Market in west Russellville near a neighborhood at South Vancouver and West Main streets. The Russellvill...

Mental Illness Awareness WeekAmong my numerous work responsibilities under the umbrella of sports editor is to edit daily and weekly features, including Annie’s Mailbox, Ask Dr. K and so on. One Annie’s Mailbox that was published Tuesday really caught my attention. If you’re reading it a second time, good. If you’re reading it the first time, read on: “Dear Annie: I want to share my story of depression — and hope — so that it might help others. “I’m nearly 50 now, but onl...

Scatter shooting and thinking about voting, blood clots, rainScatter shooting while wondering who the next head football coach at the University of Arkansas will be. Register: Monday, that’s tomorrow, is the last day to register to vote to be eligible to cast a ballot in the November general election. I urge everyone who isn’t registered to take care of that business and get yourself on the role of registered voters. Of course, I’ll also encourage everyone who is registered to vote to get yourself to th...

Tri-County leaders offer some surprisesWe’re just a little more than halfway through the football season and we’ve had plenty of surprises this year. We’ve had plenty of things go exactly as expected. For instance, at the start of the season we all expected Pottsville to control the 4A-4 conference. And they have. On the other hand, some of us didn’t necessarily expect the Cyclones to dominate Fort Smith Northside and Little Rock Parkview. But they did. Atkins wasn’t expected to de...

Thank you, Gene Daughtry, thanks DadGene Daughtry is the chairman of the Republican Party of Pope County, but I hope his views are not the views of a political party I once respected. I could feel the venom and the veiled racism, as I read his sarcastic rant about our President. There are many Republicans who once railed against this kind of attack on a sitting U.S. President, and called it unpatriotic. My father, who died a couple of years ago, lived with me over the last sever...

Mitt Romney leads Fork Over Your Vote 2012 PollAfter two weeks of voting, Mitt Romney has taken a commanding lead in Brown’s Catfish’s Fork Over Your Vote poll. It’s way too soon to predict but the lima beans are flying. Diverse opinions surround this election with some of our patrons expressing everything from passionate pleas to total disgust with the process. One passionate voter strolled through the restaurant chanting “four more years” while others were just as enthusiastic as they ex...

That they might be Catholic or universal“It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority,” Jesus informed his disciples. “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:7-8). We are thus alerted to the Catholic or universal character of the church. Coupled with what was identified in earlier articles, concerning that it is...

Thank you, President ObamaThank you for giving America a weak and inept image in the world. You and your administration of progressives have tried to hide behind “the movie” no one has seen, as a reason for acts of violence and death of Americans across the Muslim world during the last 9-11 anniversary. Obviously, America is no longer respected as the strong powerful beacon of freedom it once was and the terroristic happenings of the last few years are the byproduct of...

Moment for the RazorbacksI guess it’s time to talk about the Razorbacks. I’ve been putting it off for quite some time, but it’s getting so bad I think I have to speak up. By now, you’re heard all the ugly numbers. You’ve read every negative story and heard nearly every angry analyst and fan spout off how embarrassing this is. Arkansas sits woefully near the bottom of almost every statistic that makes a team great. It’s the worst we’ve been statistically since 1992. Am...

The journey across the worldDo you ever just sit back and reflect on your life? Well, I do. A lot. Probably more than most. I think about how I got to where I am at this point in my life in the car, in the shower, in class, and a multitude of other places. Since this is my first column and I haven’t done a lot of reflecting today, I’m just going to pour it out right here. Oddly enough, I was born right here in Russellville. I made my entrance into this world almost 22 ye...

Historical statistics favor ObamaUsing history and statistics as a guide, one can possibly arrive at some tentative conclusions regarding the outcome of the 2012 presidential election. Historical statistics reveal that the U.S. presidency is a better stepping stone to the presidency than a governorship. More presidents have been re-elected to a second term as president as compared to only ten governors who have moved directly from a gubernatorial office to the presidency. Ano...

Time is the time of our rejoicingIn Jerusalem, the streets are abuzz with activity today! Families are setting up their sukkahs in preparation for the Feast of Tabernacles! The finest linens will go on the tables in these rickety temporary dwellings. The cots will be made up with festival bedding, fine tapestries will be hung to decorate the walls. The best of the china and glassware will come out of storage to grace the holiday table. The excitement will build and build as t...

Scene itA few weeks ago, I visited a high school I’d never been to before for a story. I followed the signs that alerted me to the location of the cafeteria, rather proudly I must admit. I’m a bit directionally challenged. The door was locked. I could see people inside the room, which was across the way, and they were looking back at me. They is really only two, but I was still irked they didn’t come to the door and let me in. I turned to walk away an...